


What Used to Be

by captaincaitay



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: F/M, Force Bond (Star Wars), Post-Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Post-Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Post-Star Wars: The Last Jedi, References to Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008), Star Wars References
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-02
Updated: 2020-03-24
Packaged: 2021-02-28 05:08:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,580
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22988428
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/captaincaitay/pseuds/captaincaitay
Summary: The Mandalorian and the Child are running across the galaxy evading the bounty hunters sent to retrieve them. Along the way, the two encounter many different people, from back stabbers, to liars, and those who want them dead. Resources seem to run out more quickly with a 50-year old toddler, and stopping on the outer rim planet known as Taris is the next stop for the (not so) lone hunter.
Relationships: Baby Yoda & The Mandalorian (The Mandalorian TV), Din Djarin/Reader, Din Djarin/You, Dyn Jarren/Reader, Dyn Jarren/You, Mando/reader, Mando/you, The Mandalorian (The Mandalorian TV) & Original Character(s), The Mandalorian/Reader, The Mandalorian/You
Comments: 1
Kudos: 26





	1. The Beginning

The Razor Crest settles on the landing pad and the sound of pressure releasing from the landing gears sizzles outside. Multiple switches are flipped as the engines are powered down by its pilot, and the final whizzing sounds fill the ships metal interior. In that moment, the ship is finally quiet, but it only last a short few seconds before cooing is heard from the seat next to the Mandalorian.

The Child has had the ball in its grasps since jumping to hyperspace after their last excursion, occupying its attention for the last few parsecs, but upon realizing they were stopped once again, its attention was on its protector. The Mandalorian stood from his seat and gently picked up the small creature from the seat beside him, securing it in one arm as he began his descent down the stairs from the cockpit. As his feet hit the metal flooring, he stepped aside and opened up the secured hatch he kept The Child in while he was away. Gently, he set the green toddler down on the makeshift bed, and handed him back the ball he was oh so fascinated with.

“I’ll come back soon,” the monotone voice projected. At times it was unknown if the toddler understood him, but nonetheless the child's ears fell and the Mandalorian shut the hatch again, concealing The Child from prying eyes. The hunter took a couple steps backwards, and opened up the hidden arsenal, grabbing his Amban rifle and securing it firmly against his back. By now, there must’ve been a dock official waiting for him to exit his ship, and so he was ready to retrieve some much needed supplies. With the push of a button, the Mandalorian watched through his helmet as his ramp descended ahead of him, sunshine filtering in as it lowered.

Just as he expected, there was a dock official with a tablet in arm waiting for his descent down the ramp. The Mandalorians armor thudded as his boots rocked down the ramp and onto the ground where the other, notably smaller male, was waiting.

“I don’t see your ship in my database,” he stated. The Mandalorian had his eyes locked on the other male, who only stared blankly into his helmet, a trickle of sweat beaded down the side of his cheek. The armoured man reached his gloved hands into his belt, and fished out a medium sized amount of money from a secured place.

“This should cover the dock for the day,” the monotone voice said, releasing the money into the palm of the official. The pale man rubbed the money in his hand before giving the man behind the helmet a small grin, and stepped aside, “Welcome to Taris.”

The Mandalorian strutted past the dock official towards a bulk heavy door that parted automatically for him to enter. Taris was once claimed to have been a marvelous planet which invited overpopulation and corruption before being decimated by the Sith empire. Stories of those horrendous times was now a part of history, but with time the city almost rebuilt itself, just never to its glory days. Now, as the Mandalorian walked down a hallway to a cluster of shops, it was a large city that didn’t even hold a flame to Coruscant, it was eerily quiet yet populated. He pushed his way through to another door that opened to his presence, and he wandered inside. The shop was nearly empty, a couple of patrons sat at random tables with drinks in their hands, and the Mandalorian glanced over them once, but still walked towards the person behind the counter.

The human behind the counter looked up from their holopad, looking over the hunter with a scowl, “I’ve only ever heard stories of the Mandalorians.. Never did I think I would see one in the flesh.”

Ignoring his comments, the Mandalorian set some money on the counter, “I’m in need of supplies. Whatever food and medical supplies you have will do.”

The shopkeeper glanced down at the shining money on the counter and grumbled lowly, sliding it back towards the masked man, “I will not serve your kind here.”

The Mandalorian, looked down at the counter, and back up at the shopkeeper, before someone else’s voice radiated proudly in the room, “Now Larrim don’t be that way to a guest,” it started. The Mandalorian moved his head slightly to look over his shoulder, noticing a well dressed, older male who had entered the shop just now, followed closely by two armoured soldiers, who had a dead look in their faces. The shopkeeper, now known as Larrim, was about to say something before the well dressed man behind the Mandalorian put a hand up, “please, I insist. Charge my tab too while you’re at it.”

The shopkeeper, now eager to serve him, disappeared behind a door to a backroom to gather the requested supplies. The Mandalorian finally turned to face the unidentified gentleman, who was only smiling at him, “I can cover the cost of my things,” the monotone voice said, but the other man simply shook his head.

“Consider it a gift from me to you, a guest, one that I just had to greet myself,” he extended his hand towards the armoured hunter, “my name is prime minister Jonathan Tokani, and when I heard of your presence I knew I had to meet you, you’re just the person I was looking for.”

The Mandalorian glanced down at his outstretched hand, but ignored it and peered at the man behind his visor, “What exactly do you mean?”

The man exhaled sharply, lacing his fingers together to rest against him, “It’s my daughter.. She was taken by those unruly gang members in the Outer City and held hostage. My men they.. They have been unsuccessful in retrieving her.”

The Mandalorian shrugged, turning back to the counter, “That sounds like a you problem.”

“Please,” the man stepped forward, causing the Mandalorian to tense, “I can pay you handsomely.”

The Mandalorian pondered for a few moments. It’s true that he could use the money, not that he was desperate for it, but funding was getting low and the amount of money a government official could provide him would be sufficient enough to tide them over for at least a couple of weeks, depending on how much they kept jumping from planet to planet. Under his helmet he closed his eyes for a moment, finally giving in and turning around, “Fine. I’ll do it. Triple my rate per day.”

The prime minister grinned and clapped his hands together, “Mandalorian you are a true hero,” he started, as the man he was speaking to started to walk past him to the exit, “I’ll get your things delivered to your ship-”

“ **_Do not enter my ship_ ** ,” the Mandalorian paused to command, looking over his shoulder and looking at the prime minister, who threw his hands up.

“Quite fine, we’ll have it left in your bay then.”

Exiting the shop, the Mandalorian walked back towards the direction he had came, back towards the docking bay he had landed on, and the doors automatically opened for him once more. The official looked up momentarily and then back down at his pad, engaged in whatever he was working on. The Mandalorian walked in his direction, and the clanking of his boots was enough to make the male look up at him.

“Leaving so soon?” He asked.

“Not exactly,” his voice boomed, and he reached into a pocket on his belt, pulling out a comm device, “if anyone tries to enter my ship, I need to know immediately.”

Hesitating, the other man took the device in his fingers and shrugged, “Yeah sure.. nothing else to do ‘round here anyway.”

The Mandalorian stared at him for just a moment, he knew this man wouldn’t dare enter himself, and glancing over at the ship he pondered if he should really follow through with this mission. It should be easy enough, since the destruction of the city so long ago, the terrain of the Outer City should be easy to navigate, especially if these gang members were to use vehicles. Easy tracking, which means it shouldn’t take him that long to accomplish, and they would be in dire need of resources and credits soon enough. He glanced down in his helmet for a moment before finally walking towards the large bulk doors, he was sure he could complete this in a timely manner before The Child woke.

-

The sun was beginning to set over the trees, casting a vibrant orange glow, highlighted by pink and purple. The wind was quiet despite the looming dark clouds in the distance, the sound of rustling the leaves above and the warmth from a nearby fire was just enough to keep you from thinking about your chilled fingers. This was the perfect time to ponder “just how did we get here?”

The answer was simple: greed and (in your case) human trafficking.

Since the fall of the Empire, and the New Republic trying to get its footing on a strong democracy, corruption seemed to be at an all time high. Your mistake? Questioning the Prime Minister’s involvement. But, this just proves that guilty men will do anything to cover their tracks.

So here you were, locked in the dingiest of cages, pacing back and forth in the small metal rectangle bars and sighed softly. Your eyes followed straight ahead as you’d spin around to pace the other direction. Finally, one of the gang members growled, irritation audible in the atmosphere.

“Why is she only pacing?”

“Because,” you interjected, gripping two of the bars, “all I can do is be locked in here! What, you don’t believe in feeding your guests?”

You saw a flicker out of the corner of your eye, and one of the men surrounding the fire came over to your cage, and began to unlock it. You brushed off the reflection you saw as the small door opened and the gang members large hand grabbed your arm and pulled you down.

“Hey- woah,” you caught yourself from falling and he began to pull you in the direction of the fire, “I’m a human, not a Bantha, you don’t have to pull me around.”

His meaty hands shoved you down towards the ground, and you huffed as your knees crumbled below you, the feeling of mud settling around your body. Rain had fallen earlier in the day, and the looming clouds that lingered around the sunset seemed to show more was on the way.

You watched the five men who had dragged you out here eating some kind of meat, but all they handed you was a lumpy ball of rice. You didn’t hesitate from accepting this since you hadn’t eaten at all since yesterday morning, and you nibbled on it sparingly as the men spoke amongst themselves.

_ How much do you think we can get? _

_ Daughter to a minister? Pfft.. a lot. _

_ Who should we even start with? Are the Hutts still around? _

You blinked, staring at the brown food held in your fingers. The rice like texture was gummy to the touch but still slightly warm, and you shoved in your mouth hastily, you were starving and this was as good as it seems it was going to get.

You chewed the soft food in your mouth when another flash of metal appeared out the corner of your eye, and it seemed as though one of your capturer saw it as well, as he let out a  _ humph  _ sound.

“What is it?” Ones whose back was facing the trees asked.

“I thought I saw something’s all,” he mumbled, standing to his feet, his hand resting on the holt of his gun.

“Well then go check it out,” the other one replied, and with another grumble, the man was off into the bushes and disappeared from your line of sight. Not many moments passed before there was a blaster sound that echoed through the air. Your head shot up along with the other remaining members of the gang. They stood quickly readying their weapons and one voiced out loud for one to grab hold of you.

As one gang member hoisted you up to your feet, arm crushing you against him, in the distance another flash of metal appeared, steadying for a moment as the armored man shot a fire at one of your keepers-

And he completely vanished.

An Amban rifle? You had only heard tales of these weapons from a time long ago.

The other men were bewildered, some charging the spot that they had last seen the armored man and some a couple more holding their position near you. You were panting as the man holding you jerked you backwards, his free arm outstretched with his blaster pointed to defend himself. Your eyes darted around looking for another glance at the armored man, and seemingly out of the darkness his appeared again, grabbing a hold of one of the men close to him and disarming of him of his blaster and shooting him with it before letting it fall to the ground, and swiftly switching to his rifle, taking out not one, but two more men close to him.

The three men still surrounding you began to panic, their shots getting sloppier and less accurate, and the man could easily dodge each shot it seemed, nearing closer to his targets. Your eyes shifted upwards as the man holding you captive has loosened his grip on you, eyes trained on the attacking metal man.

_ No. _

The man who was holding you had let you go, tossing you to ground and you watched as he stepped closer to the metal man as he was still fending off one last man, not seeing your holder coming behind him. Just as he had finished off the one he was fighting, he turned around face to face with a blaster.

There was a shot fired, it echoed in the still air.

The Mandalorian didn’t even blink in his visor as the shot was fired, but the face in front of him had grown pale, a stain of green blood seeped from his torso, and the body had fallen just before his feet. Behind him was who he had come in search of: the Prime Ministers daughter, clothes dirty with mud, kneeled on the ground, a large blaster in her hands, and still sizzling from the shot fired.

Hands steady, one finger relaxing from the trigger, you just stared at the man who you had killed. You had never done it before, but the faint words of what your father told you when you were younger rang in your ears for a brief moment:  _ people will try and hurt, or even kill you.. you have to protect yourself. _

You finally looked upwards at the man who had saved you, lowering the blaster finally to the ground, finally realizing who was in front of you.

“I had it handled,” the audibly strong voice said to you, walking over the body and to you, he offered his hand for you, “here.”

You took his larger hand, and it clasped around yours, helping you up from the soft ground, but your eyes never left his helmet.

“I’m sure you did, but I was beginning to think you didn’t see him” you finally said, not earning much of a response from him, “either way.. Could you get me out of these? The key is there,” you motioned back towards the cage you were in, the boxes that were beside it were open, and the key device somewhere amongst them.

The Mandalorian nodded, walking over to the open boxes, and rifling through one before coming upon the device, you had followed over beside him, and he turned to face you, offering his hand once again for you to rest the cuff link in his palm. You obliged, setting both your hands into his palm, and with his other hand he placed the other device beside your holdings, and it rang out a beep, opening the cuffs and freeing your hands.

You instinctively rubbed your wrists, and the Mandalorian tossed the remaining metal to the ground, “Thank you,” you mustered to him, and you earned a nod in response.

“Just doing my job,” he replied and looked up at the darkening sky, “we should get moving.”

He started to walk back the direction he came from, and you stalled for a moment contemplating grabbing the weapon left in the open case you stood by. You closed your eyes tight for a moment and let out a sigh, grabbing the smaller blaster and hurrying to catch up to the Mandalorian.

You had walked in silence for what felt like forever after that. The sun had completely settled past the trees, and you were surrounded by the last hues of sunlight painted in purple. The Mandalorian kept his stride up, you trailing behind him, holding the gun in your hand. The silence was unsettling for you, so you decided to break the silence.

“Where are you from?” You asked.

“Doesn’t matter,” he replied shortly, and you huffed.

“Well,” you started, “there aren’t exactly a lot of Mandalorians here, a lot of people don’t exactly like your presence because of the war,” you said, “so are you passing through?”

“Yes.” He answered again shortly.

“But you said that.. I was a job?” You asked, looking at the back of his helmet strangely.

“Your father hired me.”

You stopped dead in your tracks, your eyes wide, but he continued on not noticing you stopped, “My  _ father _ ?”

“Yes.”

You shook your head. No, no, no, no! This could not be true. Your skin grew bumpy as the air hit it, chills going along your body. You shook your head, taking a step back.

“I-I can’t continue with you.”

This finally caused the Mandalorian to stop and turn to look at you, “What?”

You stood your ground, pressing your feet into the soil firmly, “I’m not going further with you.”

He shook his head, “Yes. You are.”

You mimicked him, “No. I’m not,” you said which you could see made him irritated, and he glanced over his shoulder in the direction you were traveling towards.

“Your father is paying me to return you safely to him, to your people, your family-“

You scoffed, and under his helmet he raised a brow, “That’s impossible.”

“What do you mean impossible? I spoke with him just today-“

“My father is dead,” you cut him off, which finally got him to look you directly in the face, and he noticed your pale expression, fist tightened beside you, eyes darker than before, “he died when I was younger. Sometime after the Clone Wars ended.”

You shook your head, “The Prime Minister is my,” you sighed, “uncle.. I wasn’t taken or whatever he said to you. He sold me to them. He had been funneling money from different sections of the government for himself, and he didn’t like me addressing him of these acts. He is as corrupt as they come.”

The Mandalorian let your words sink in, pondering how he would continue with his job now. Why were they always filled with complications? He should have followed his gut on just leaving with The Child after all, he shuffled his feet and motioned towards you.

“And if you don’t continue with me, then what? You’re just going to stay out here?”

You shrugged, “There’s no hope for me, Mandalorian. If you don’t return with me and leave this planet, then he is just going to send someone else out here to fetch me, and probably send me off world to become a slave somewhere else,” you gave a lopsided, sad smile, “my life here is over.”

The tall, sturdy man sighed, glancing at the ground for a moment as if to process as the thoughts ran wildly through your mind. How low you had fallen since being sent to this dingy, outer world, pile of rock-

“Come with me then,” the voice spoke. You raised a brow at him and he nodded behind him, “return with me, and I’ll say I could not locate you. We’ll sneak you onto my ship, and leave. And I’ll take you to another planet - start new there.”

You pondered it for a moment. Maybe you could return to your home planet after all, resume your life there that you had to flee so long ago. The Mandalorian watched you as your eyes seemed to search his body for some kind of response. Maybe if you should trust him, which he didn’t see why not seeing as he saved your life, then you had his back in return.

“Okay,” you finally answered and he nodded at you, thunder sounded above you both, and you sighed, “but we should probably seek shelter. The storms on this planet can be unpredictable.”

You had started in a direction cross from where you were originally headed, and the Mandalorian followed behind, keeping a comfortable distance. You glanced over your shoulder at the much taller man behind you, “We had passed this cave when those men were looking for a place to set up camp,” you had started to tell him, and he listened, but only partly. The trees parted to a small opening before. The edge of a small ridge of rocks, an opening of which looked big enough to hold the smallest of camps. Perfect for two people.

“I’m going to scout the area,” his voice rang and you nodded. He didn’t give you time to reply, so instead you searched for a way to make a fire.

That’s how you found yourself sitting beside a fire with a Mandalorian, still dressed in his heavy armor. You had insisted on taking the night watch, the events of the past couple days still fresh in your mind, and he had obliged, settling against a stiff rock, arms crossed, and head tilted to his shoulder. You, on the other hand, had watched the heavy rainfall and stared into the darkness, the only light was the fire you were sat beside. It was quiet besides the occasional flicker of embers, trees steady, ground moist but no sound from the ground.

You exhaled, some tension leaving your body, and your mind began to wonder. What would it be like returning home? Would you even be welcome without your father? With the Empire fallen, you didn’t see why not, but nevertheless things change. People change. Did you change? Maybe, today had been a number of firsts for you, but that didn’t mean you had changed on the inside-

_ Crack. _

You froze, drawing a blank on any of the thoughts that were crossing your mind. You looked towards the Mandalorian to your side past the fire, and noticed he hadn’t budged at all. You stood steadily, gripping the blaster in your arm.

You should wake him.

But you didn’t.

You had entered the darkness by yourself, carefully stepping over the branches you could at least see as you adjusted to the darkness. All you could make out was silhouettes of the trees, and as you made your way deeper into the trees, you paused, seeing a dark moving figure.

You crouched, your eyes training on them in the distance. There were just a couple, talking to themselves in a dialect you couldn’t make out, but they continued on without noticing your presence. You relaxed the grip you had on your blaster, and before you had a chance to even stand-

_ Everything went dark. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow. Hey guys. It’s been awhile since I’ve posted on here. Sorry for that. Honestly, my mental health dropped dramatically and writing wasn’t a concern of mine. But, this year has been pretty good to me so far and I feel a lot better. I’m writing again and would love to be able to connect with everyone again. I don’t know what I’ll be updating or what won’t be. But this is new, so it will be updated (chapter 2 is ready).  
> Also, I am posting this same note in my other new piece. Sorry if you read this twice lol.  
> If you have any questions feel free to contact me. Glad to be back :)
> 
> Xoxo


	2. The Saviour

This was not going the way he planned.

When the Mandalorian awoke he jolted forward, the orange sunrise gleaming on the ground in the opening. One thing he noticed right away was the dwindling fire and the lack of your presence. He stood quickly in hopes that you had just wandered out into the opening. 

He was wrong.

As he made his way back to the ports of Taris, his mind processed all of his options. He wanted to believe that you just left him behind, going on your own way to fend for yourself. All he had to do was make it back to his ship and get off this rock.

But of course he was wrong about that as well.

The path to his ship was relatively clear, the early morning sun was low and he was trying to move swiftly and discreetly. But he always seemed to draw attention to himself, there was no way to avoid that. As he was about to round the corner, he noticed several men waiting outside the bay door where his ship was currently docked. The Mandalorian squeezed himself into a small alleyway, pausing to see if he could hear them speaking.

The alien dialect wasn’t one he knew, and the only familiar words he could make out weren’t in his favor. He looked down the alleyway, noticing it looped around the bay he needed to get into. If he couldn’t go through the front door, maybe he could scale in. With that thought, he started down the dark alley, knowing what he had to do.

Where were you taken?

That was the question that filled his mind. As he carefully climbed the metal wall up into the sky, he grunted as he pulled himself up to the edge. He peered over to see if there were any signs of more of those men in there. His ship he noticed was still closed tight, so at least the bay attendant was prompt with that. Hopefully the Child was alright in there by himself. 

There were three men that he could see, one near the entrance of his ship and two more walking around the wall of the bay he was on top of. Best course of action? Get himself in without being noticed, intimidate one to tell him what he needs to know, and get out of here. 

But things never seem to go the way he plans. 

He carefully had managed to drop down into the shadows, and take one of the men out, strangling him into unconsciousness. He laid his body down behind a storage box, and waited for the next one to circle around, repeating his actions before moving towards his ship. 

As he was about to pull the third man to the ground, a blaster was placed beside his head. The Mandalorian paused, standing fully erect and turning to face the person behind the gun. It was one of the Prime Ministers men he saw yesterday. 

“The Prime Minister is very unhappy you did not complete the job you were asked to do,” he said. The voice would’ve made the average person's hair stand up on their arms. But not his. He remained cool, letting him continue with his monologue. 

Why did people always have a whole monologue prepared for these situations?

“What did she tell you?”

The Mandalorian clenched his fists without even realizing, “That your government is corrupt and deserves to be outed for what it is: money hungry slave drivers who sell their own people for a profit.”

The alien that was once guarding his ship let out an animalistic noise, probably a laugh, as did the man who was speaking. The Mandalorian felt an irritating presence enter his body. His quick movements allowed the Mandalorian to flip his small blaster and shoot the alien, and he used his free arm to disarm the guard, twisting his wrist behind his back. The guard let out a growl as the Mandalorian pulled his arm tighter behind his back.

“What? We don’t find this funny?”

“Screw you, Mando,” the guard let out his pinched lips. 

“The girl. Where is she,” he demanded more than asked. 

Silence filled the air, which just upset him more. Pulling the guard arm further away there was an audible cracking sound that ripples through the air, along with a pained cry. 

“Zygerria! Zygerria!”

The Mandalorian didn’t reply, besides slamming the guards body against his metal ship, letting his now limp body hit the ground (he was  _ probably _ still alive). Mando stood there for a moment to collect himself. 

Zygerria. It was one of the most booming planets along the slave trade routes during the Clone Wars, but he had thought that it had completely dissolved at this point. Maybe it was an underground type of operation. The New Republic had put a ban on slave trades, but obviously that wasn’t stopping the problem. He didn’t like the idea of slaves, he didn’t believe he was any better than any other species.

Except maybe the Hutts, but that’s besides the point.

He stepped over the fallen body and pushed a button on his wrist that began to open his ship door. As the ramp lowered he was met with the image of the Child standing up at the top, ears moving upwards as he saw Mando walking on board.

Zygerria was their next stop.

-

Gasping, air entered your body as you shot upwards on a hard surface. You blinked, your eyes adjusting to the bright sunlight that filtered into the room. Particles of dust floated through the beams of light filtering into the small room.

Where were you?

That was what you asked yourself as you squinted around the room. You moved so that your feet dangled off the edge of what you were laid on. 

You had a bad feeling about this.

The clothes you were in were still dirty, the long skirt ripped slightly at the edges. Your hair felt oily and itchy and skin hot to the touch. Whoever took you out did so quickly you must have hid the ground hard as there was a small cut you could feel on your cheek. 

You should’ve just woken up the Mandalorian. 

You frowned. You were stuck here and no one knew it. Your uncle truly bested you! That nerf herder. 

There was a sound on the other side of the door, and you stood quickly, and the door swung open outwards. There was a woman on the other side, holding a pile of clothes and she walked inside. You noticed a gun holstered on her hip as she stepped inside. She pushed the clothing to your chest and you took it from her. She exited the room as quickly as she had entered. You looked at the clean clothes in your arms and couldn’t resist the urge to get into them. The pants and long sleeve shirt fit you almost perfectly, and the boots they had given you seemed to be the right size too. You were finishing lacing the up when the door opened once again. You stood quickly, and the woman was back. This time though, she was holding cuffs.

You now despised cuffs.

She motioned her fingers for you to give her your arms, and begrudgingly you did. She took your wrists in her hands and locked a clunk of metal around them, entombing your hands completely. You scowled a bit and she paid no mind to it pushing you forwards and into a hallway. You lost your footing for a moment, but regained your composure as another looked on. 

What was going to happen?

They led you through a dark passageway. You had no clue where you were headed but the person in front of you did. You followed their lead, trying to see if there was anything familiar to you. But with each turn you grew increasingly disoriented, and finally they stopped in front of a large door. It wasn’t like the one you had just come from, and you noticed them straighten themselves a bit, and the woman latched onto your arm. Before being able to protest, the doors were opened slowly. 

It was a large and equally dark room. There were lights flickering around, but they were so low it wasn’t like they did much except add to the ambiance. The woman nearly shoved you inside and you narrowed your eyes. Why was she so aggressive all of a sudden?

“Is that you, (Y/N),” a voice asked from further in the room.

You didn’t recognize the voice, instead you raised a brow, “Who is asking?”

Out of the shadows a smaller more plump man stepped. You had no idea who he was, but you got chills on your arms. He walked closer to you, and had a weird smile on his face.

“My name is Gar Harik, and I’m the man behind all this,” he motioned his arms in the air. You scoffed.

“You’re the one behind this dark and dank hole?”

He frowned as the words left your lips. You didn’t budge though, trying to show that you were strong on the inside. He jerked his head, and the woman abruptly grabbed your arms, and pulled you towards a table.

“Let’s have a little chat shall we?”

At the entrance to the city, the Mandalorian was stomping in. He always garnered attention, but this time felt worse. He felt a sense of nausea set into his stomach as he walked deeper and deeper into the city. He followed the lead of another, keeping his distance but he had picked them out of the crowd when he had arrived. His plan this time was simple, pose as a buyer to get in and try and pull information out of whoever he met. If you were on Zygerria, then he was getting closer to helping you.

Mando paused as the person he was following stopped outside the door, and pushed a button. A door slid up and they entered, only for it to close behind them. Waiting for a few moments, Mando did the same. He walked up to the building and pushed the button, and the door opened. As he stepped inside he was surrounded by darkness. After that thought, flights flickered on around him, and there was a woman waiting in front of him. She was a fighter, he could tell that immediately. Her hand rested against her hip and the other on the holster that held her blaster. She eyed him up and down, but kept a cool gaze.

“What business do you have here, Mando,” she asked.

“I’m looking to buy some help,” he answered just as casually. Her finger rubbed the holster, but she wouldn’t be able to see he noticed that.

“A man of your stature, I know just the one for you,” he nodded her head back deeper into the building, “if you would follow me.”

Mando nodded, and began to follow this woman deeper into the darkness. Silence folded over them, but Mando kept his distance. The woman would occasionally glance over her shoulder, and he kept glancing down at her hand on her holster.

“You said you had one in mind,” he questioned, earning only a nod in response, so he continued, “what if I’m looking for something specific?”

“And what exactly would that be?” She finally threw over her shoulder.

“Human female. Roughly (age), and (height). (Color hair).”

She stopped in her tracks, and so did he. Oh, she knew where you were.

Before he had the chance to unlock her holster, his plaster was pressed into her back, “I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” he warned, and she slowly removed her hand from her hip, “take me there. Now.”

“Fine,” she grumbled, and he pushed his blaster into the crevice of her back. She trudge forward, but taking a turn down another path. He was silent as he stepped along behind her, and after taking another turn there was a door in the distance. It looked unguarded from what he could see, and he noticed her rubbing her fingers together nervously.

He laced his arm around her neck, causing her to gasp for air. He didn’t budge as she struggled until she finally stopped, and he let her hit the ground.

He did not like slaves. Or anyone to do with it.

He hurried down the remainder of the dark hallway, his legs taking him closer and closer to the looming door. As he came to the cross section there was an unsuspecting person there around the corner. Startled by Mando’s sudden appearance, he hesitated which gave him plenty of time to act quickly in knocking him out. Finally looking to the door, he was quick to push the heavy door open, making a loud entrance.

He didn’t really know what to expect. But the dark room didn’t hide what was going on. Here you laid on the floor, body shaking and what appeared to be some kind of liquid spilled everywhere. Whoever else was here was startled by his entrance, but he didn’t really care about that at the moment. His legs rushed him over and he knelt down beside you. You were staring at the ceiling above you, your lips trembling. He could see your eyes were dilated, but even with him being so close you didn’t seem to notice he was there. Carefully he placed his gloved hand on the other side of your cheek and turned you to face him.

“(Y/N)?” He asked quietly.

Your lips trembled slightly, and there was a noise in the room that sounded as if something was knocked over. Quickly Mando took his blaster and shot in the direction of the sound without looking, and a second later a loud thud filled the room. Whoever that was had hit ground dead. Putting his weapon back, he placed his other hand on your cheek.

You were trying to say his name, he could tell by the movements your lips were trying to make. He glanced around before seeing a hypopen nearby, and he reached over you to grab it. He shoved it in a part of his belt and looked back to you.

“I’m gonna get you out of here, okay?” He asked, but you didn’t answer, your eyes seemed to register what he said, and he carefully scooped you into his arms. He tried to get your head to lean onto his shoulder, and he backed out of the room. He would make sure neither of you saw this room again.

-

Mando had never cared about the people he met. Not really until he had encountered the Child. So for him to be this worried was different for him. He didn’t know where he was going or who could help. When he managed to get you back to his ship, he had set you down on the makeshift bed he then laid on. The Child looked at you curiously, and watched as Mando was fluttering around his ship trying to find something that could possibly help you. He kept throwing glances over his shoulder to check on you. You still trembled so he had thrown a blanket over your body, but your eyes were still glued open. What he was going to have to do was find a medical facility or someone who could tell what was in the hypopen that was used on you.

He walked back over to you and placed his hand back on your cheek. You weren’t shakin anymore, and your eyes darted to him for a moment. He watched as you slowly, finally closed your eyes. He didn’t know what to do at this moment. He removed his hand and glanced around for the Child, and heard the whirring of his engines outside.

“Son of a-“ he mumbled and quickly climbed the stairs into the cockpit. His head peered into the cockpit and his eyes landed on the Child in his seat, flicking buttons. He must have seen him do it before because he was readying the ship to leave. Mando quickly finished up the stairs and grabbed the Child, holding him in his lap as he sat in his pilot chair.

“What are you doing?” He asked calmly, earning a gurgle in response. Mando looked down at his navicomputer and tapped the screen.

“How did you set theSee coordinates?”

He didn’t expect an answer, but the Child laid its ears down and pointed at the navicomputer. Mando looked from the Child to his navicomputer. The engines still swirled in the background and something in him told him to go there. He didn’t know what the feeling was but he decided to follow it.

He set the Child down in the bassinet he had made next to him and gripped the yoke. He lifted the ship off the ground and flipped some switches so the legs were retracted into the hull of the ship. As they entered the atmosphere, the Child cooed happily, and Mando glanced back at his companion. Playing happily with the ball given to it, Mando looked back to the stars. He didn’t know what was coming, but he knew that they had to act fast. As soon as the ship was cleared from the planet's air space, they were shot into hyperspace. 

Their next stop was Dantooine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well you’ll be happy to know that part three is done and just needs to be uploaded lol this part is shorter just bc the next part wouldn’t have fit in here.


	3. The Jedi

The journey to Dantooine seemed like it took forever, to him maybe, but after landing the Crest and climbing back down the stairs, he was met with the image of the Child looking at you. More and more he found himself at your side. You hadn’t woken up since your eyes fluttered shut hours ago. He walked over and kneeled beside the cot he had placed you on, and reached out to your hand. He flipped your wrist over and pressed two of his fingers into your wrist.

He could feel your heart beating slowly, but it was there.

He looked over your face, and the Child cooed next to him, which made him tear his eyes from you. Mando rubbed the Child’s head with his gloved hand before using both to pick him up. He walked over to the pod Mando used to carry the Child in and placed him inside, moving the blankets to cushion it as much as he could. Mando turned back to look at you for a moment, and with the click of a button on his wrist, the pod closed and concealed the Child within it. Mando pressed another one so that the pod would follow his movements, and Mando pressed a button for the ramp to his ship to open.

Dantooine was a calm farmers planet. From what he could remember from his history lessons long ago, it was home to the original jedi council during the Old Republic. It was thought to be a holy ground for them, tales of padawans and serenity were often told about this planet. Mando exited the Razor Crest and it was just as he had imagined. The port he had landed in used to be a compound and was converted when the family line died out. Now, it was a small bustling port with different vendors littered around. Mando walked around, getting a lay of the land, and of course earning looks from strangers. His eyes landed on what looked to be a medical vendor, hopefully a full fledged doctor.

As he made his way over, he pulled the sample he stole and held it in his clenched hand. The man behind the counter looked up as he approached, and sat up a little straighter.

“A Mandalorian,” he scoffed, “didn’t know your kind was still around these parts.”

He chose to ignore that comment. 

“Can you tell me what this hypospray contains,” he said calmly. He extended his palm out, revealing what he was holding. The man looked down at the spray, and grumbled as he took it into his own hands.

He looked it over, but within seconds he was handing it back, “without the proper labelling, no I can’t.”

Mando looked at the hypospray, and then back to the man. What a waste of his time. He took the hypospray and put it back into his belt, and turned to walk away, but a voice stopped him.

“You can try going to the old temple, and see if one of the computers there can read the contents,” the man offered. Mando looked over his shoulder to peer at the man, and then moved on. The old jedi temple? Great. But if it held an answer to helping you, he would follow through with it.

There was only one way in and out of the compound, and Mando made his way over to it. There was a person who would open and close the gate, and the only words that exited their mouth was to be weary of the kath hounds. Mando paid no mind to it, and when he walked out into the grassy terrain, he looked around him. In the distance north of him, he could make out what seemed to be a building so he started in that direction.

The Child did change his life. He considered it to be a foundling, and that’s why he was helping to bring it back to its home. Encountering you was not part of his plan, but he couldn’t just leave you where he had found you. And now he couldn’t just let you die. The Child made him care about things he hadn’t necessarily done so in the past, not that he wasn’t a good man (he thought he was) but it was always just about business. Get the bounty puck, get the bounty captured, and then repeat the process. He met many people over the years, but none that made an impact like this. He walked towards the building in the distance, the pod floating beside him. With a click of a button on his wrist, he allowed the pod to open, so that the Child could look around. The area felt safe, despite the warning from the local of Katy hounds. Honestly, he was surprised there were any even left.

Just as the thought crossed his mind, he had to step over the bones of what he could assume had been a predator's snack. The Child peaked over the edge, and its ears fell.

“I know, kid,” Mando commented, mostly to himself, “we’ll be there soon.”

The sun was high in the sky, so he wasn’t worried about encountering anything too dangerous. The pair walked through a path between two large mounds of grass. How the path was still visible, he didn’t know, but they trudged on. The building edged closer, and they were back to an opening before a bridge.

The bridge looked to lead to the obviously rundown building. A large tree had fallen into it, which left a large hole right through it. Suddenly he felt very uneasy about the place. He looked to the Child who was sitting back into the pod, not so curious anymore. Mando took a step towards the bridge, and another, careful of the surroundings.

It looked deserted, felt deserted, just gave off a very ominous vibe. Mando slid his amban rifle off his shoulder so he could hold it in his hands, crossing the bridge to the other side. Only one way went somewhere, and that was around the building. So, that was where they went. Pieces of concrete were broken from others, Mando stepped over them carefully and finally managed to get to a large set of blast doors. He put his rifle back on his shoulder and grabbed a knife from his belt. He would have to pry the pad off the wall to retire the door to open—

Just as his hand was about to start prying the pad off the wall, the doors began to slowly creak open. Mando quickly put his knife back and grabbed his rifle, aiming it into the darkness that was welcoming him. The door obviously hadn’t opened in a long time since it opened slower than a Hutt moved, but Mando was ready. The doors stopped enough that he could fit in, and he turned the light on on his helmet. Taking a careful step forward, he and the pod entered the darkness. The hallway felt like it was swallowing them, the deeper they went the less he could make out.

It opened to a larger room, holding another tree, the only light that was let in was by the gaping hole in the wall because the fallen tree from outside. The circular room led in two different directions, and Mando chose the path closest to him. He still moved cautiously down that hallway, each step led closer and closer to light. When the hall reopened, he glanced around both sides just to make sure it was safe for him to enter.

Mando put his rifle back on his shoulder, but unlocked the hilt that held his blaster, just to be safe. He made his way into the room and it sloped downwards, where there were a number of chairs all sat in a semicircle. The Child peered through the pod curiously, and Mando looked around the room for some kind of terminal. Farther off into the darkness he could make one out, and he made his way over swiftly.

The terminal was ancient and he was surprised it turned on at all. But it blinked to life and he managed to get the terminal to open a slot for him to put the device into. It closed back up and beeped for a few moments, before displaying a word on the screen. Mando looked it over carefully, panic settling into his mind as he read it over.

There was no remedy.

He stumbled back a couple steps before he steadied himself. He breathed heavily as he tried to think. No, no, no, no this couldn’t be happening. You couldn’t just die this way. He couldn’t let that happen!

A crash from the large room made Mando stop and pull out his blaster, pointing it in the direction the sound came from. In the distance he could see a figure, hooded and in the dark, but he could make it out just fine from there.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Mando called out, his voice kept in an even tone.

“What do you seek from here,” the voice replied. Male. Definitely male. Human most likely.

Mando thought for a moment, but decided to answer, “I need a remedy for a friend of mine, they were poisoned it seems.”

The figure he could tell nodded to themselves. Mando edged forward a step, still pointing his blaster at the figure. They didn’t move, just watched Mando move closer into the sunlight that came in through the only window in the room. Mando stopped, planting his feet firmly, and the figure moved from behind the chairs, still shrouded in darkness.

“I can help you, Din Djarin,” the voice said.

Mando felt his arm lower for a moment. How did they know his name? Mando straightened his arm back to keep his blaster pointed at them.

“How do you know me,” he demanded.

The figure moved from around the chair, and into the sunlight. They were covered in dark grey robes, and carefully they moved the hood from off their head. He definitely did not recognize the man before him. He looked older, long brown hair that was pulled back behind him and a beard along his chin. The man offered him a smile.

“Because of that little one,” he said, offering his hand to the Child, who took a finger in his tiny hands. Mando lowered his blaster slightly, letting him continue, “we’ve been watching you both.”

“We,” Mando repeated, “what do you mean we?”

“Those of us who have passed long ago who are one with the Force now, connected together by the same thing, which connects this child to us as well.”

Mando blinked and the man removed his hand from the Child’s grip. If he was saying what he thought he was saying then that meant—

“Jedi,” Mando said low, and the man nodded. Mando never met a Jedi. But now he could see it. It made sense now.

“Come Din Djarin, let’s go and help your friend.”

—————

Your eyes fluttered open, and you found yourself laying on grass. The sun beamed down on your body, and the long grass blew in the wind. You slowly sat yourself up, your hair falling behind you and the sleeves of your dress touching the ground. You knew where you were, you could tell by the smell in the air, and the sound of water flowing downstream nearby.

_ Home _ .

You stood above the grass, looking all around you in a circle when you faced a man right in front of you. You took a step back, and he just smiled at you. He was dressed differently from your people, cream colored clothes and a dark brown robe over him, but his presence here didn’t startle you.

“Do I know you?” you asked him and he shook his head. You furrowed your brows a bit and he motioned for you to walk alongside him. Your feet didn’t give your brain enough time to think before they seemed to move on their own to walk next to him.

“Do you miss it here,” he asked you. His voice was warm and delicate, which made your shoulders relax.

“Everyday, but I’m here now,” you replied smiling to yourself.

“Not for too long,” he said and stopped moving, you stopped and turned to him, the hair blowing through your hair. He took your hands in his, making you face him fully, “I’m here to wake you, and leave you with a message.”

“A message..?”

He shook his head, and clapped your hands together under his, “There’s not much time, but you must help the Mandalorian with his mission. See to it that the Child makes it back home safely.”

You tried to open your mouth to speak, and he shook his head again, “You will know what to do, the Force will guide you.”

_ The Force _ ?

You didn’t get a chance to ask him any questions, before he closed his eyes and you felt the air escape your lungs. You felt like you were suffocating and your body was about to hit the ground, when suddenly you gasped awake.

You were panting, shooting upwards on the cot you were on faster than a wombat trying to seek its shelter. You stared straight ahead when a pair of hands latched onto your arm, facing you to them. Your eyes met the Mandalorians helmet, and his hands stayed on your arms.

“You’re fine, you’re okay,” he told you as you caught your breath. You blinked at him as you tried to see your surroundings. As you calmed down, he released your arms, and you slowly moved one leg then another to hang off the edge of this cot. Mando stayed in his kneeled position, and you leaned forward to place your hands on your knees.

“What happened?” You grudgingly asked, using one hand to rub a sore spot on your neck. Honestly, you couldn’t remember anything from before you were out cold. The last thing you could wrap your mind around was being left in that room alone with some guy. Slavers. You’d make sure one day that that would never happen to anyone.

“You were taken to Zygerria,” he explained, and pulled something off his belt to hand to you. You took the water canteen and were quick to undo the lid, “I found you nearly passed out on the ground, someone had injected you with a deadly paralyzing toxin.”

You nodded, listening as he spoke and you took a sip of water from his canteen. Your throat felt dry and hoarse, but the water helped a bit. If anything, you felt drained, “You came for me.” You stated it more then asked, but you looked up to meet his visor. Mandos eyes locked with yours behind the helmet, you were staring straight at him, your eyes felt like they were staring into his soul. But they looked like they had a light in them, despite everything going on.

“Yes,” he said shortly and you smiled, looking down at your feet. Mando’s head tilted slightly, watching your reaction.

“Thank you,” you said to him, finally looking back at him. You had really meant it.

“Of course,” he replied, and you smiled for a moment before it fell, and your eyes looked behind him, “is something wrong?”

You hesitated, opening your mouth to speak but then closing it all together. You didn’t know if you could tell him what happened, and he could see that, “what is it?” He asked again.

You sighed and shook your head, “Before I..woke up, there was someone there with me. In my head, or, I don’t know just there with me.”

Mando nodded to ease you to continue and you shrugged your shoulders lightly, fidgeting with the lid of his canteen, “He told me that I had to help you.”

“Help me with what?” Mando pressed, his voice a little firmer. Not that he meant to because your head shot up, your gaze landing on him. You noticed, you definitely noticed. 

“With the Child, he said,” you studied him to see a reaction, and Mando felt himself lean backwards. You watched him stay there for a moment before he stood, and turned his back on you.

“No.”

“No?” You repeated, but he was walking away from you, to a ladder you could only guess lead to the cockpit. Your mouth fell open as you tried to form a sentence.

“Yes. No.” He repeated, and grabbed onto the ladder and pulled himself up a couple of steps.

“Wait, Mando—“ you started and pushed your legs to touch the floor. You noticed your boots had been removed and the thin socks were connecting with the cold metal. You stood quickly, too quickly really, and felt your body sway under the weight. You were about to grab onto something nearby when a large body held you up, a hand catching yours and another on your waist.

You were face to chest with him, and you finally noticed just how tall and big he was. Bigger than you at least. His hands felt gentle on your body and you could almost feel the heat rise in your cheeks. Of course as you looked up into his helmet, you couldn’t see anything, but a part of you wanted to believe he was looking you over to make sure you were okay. How did he got there that fast? You didn’t know.

Mando helped you sit back on the cot, his gloved hand ran up your arm as you eased down and the other left your waist at some point.

“You should rest,” he said, standing fully again and backing away. Before you could argue with him, he was faster up the ladder this time and disappeared. You frowned, and pulled yourself backwards until your back touched the metal wall of his ship.

Nice talk.

—————

You didn’t know when you had fallen asleep, but you woke up to a blanket over your body, and darkness. There was a faint light coming from what you could still only assume was the cockpit. Your body was still folded against the wall, and you had to slowly move your body to stand from the cot. You felt better, but didn’t want to push your luck. There was no heavy Mandalorian to help you this time.

You quietly walked over to the ladder, and gripped one of the bars in your hand. It was harder to pull yourself up then you had thought, but you did it. You were quiet in your movements, and each step you were met with more and more view into the cockpit. There, back to you, the Mandalorian sat in his chair, and next to him was a pod. You finally made it up all the steps, and were about to open your mouth to speak but was cut off.

“You’re awake,” he said over his shoulder. You pressed your lips together and took a step forward.

“Do you have eyes in the back of that helmet?”

“No, just heard you wake up,” he replied and it sounded like that was that. You nodded to yourself and took another step closer to the pod. Mando looked over his shoulder at you but he didn’t tell you to stop. Two tiny green hands outstretched to you, and you gasped quietly. Oh he was adorable. He was grasping at you and you carefully picked him up out of the pod and held him against your body. He cooed happily, and you let him grab one of your fingers.

You turned back to Mando and motioned to the chair closest to him, “May I?”

“Of course,” he replied, and you smiled to yourself as you sat close to him. Mando turned his chair to face you, and was met with the image of the Child playing with your hair. You were smiling down at him and Mando felt himself smile.

“Where are you taking him?” You asked, looking up from the Child and to Mando’s helmet. How you managed to lock your eyes with him every single time was beyond him.

“I don’t know, that’s what I’ve been trying to figure out,” he said honestly. You nodded in understanding, and placed the Child in your lap.

“Please let me help you,” you whispered. You were poking at the Child, but looked back to Mando with a look in your eyes.

He was quiet. The reason why he had walked away earlier is because he didn’t feel as if bringing you along was such a good idea. Despite whatever that Jedi said, because he had said the same to him. When you repeated the words to him, something in him said no. The look on your face as he walked away made a part of him hate what he was doing. And then when he caught you, something had stirred inside him he hadn’t felt since before he was a foundling. Warm.

But then he was hesitant as he found himself under his gaze. Did he need the help? Probably. But the events of the last few days were what was fresh in his mind, and he didn’t know if he could keep not only the Child but you safe as well. But on the other hand, he knew you were a good shot.

“Okay,” he replied finally, and your eyes twinkled under the dark lights of his ship. You nearly beamed at him as you looked back to the Child. You didn’t respond, and he turned back in his chair to face the front. He hoped he had made the right decision.


	4. The Queen

Each planet had no real answers. A dead end here and there, and supplied were beginning to stretch thin once again. They had almost completely scoured the Outer Rim, with absolutely no luck. Mando grew frustrated, sitting in a local cantina and staring at a blank wall. The drink he was given “on the house” left untouched before him and all he did was run his finger up and down the glass.

What were they going to do now? There was no real way he could venture into the core planets, no absolutely not. That would draw a lot of unwanted attention to them, and there was no way the Child’s home laid there. But on the other hand, could there be answers somewhere?

No. He couldn’t risk that. Absolutely not.

The door to the cantina opened, and his eyes drifted to the door. From the sunlight the person who emerged drew a few glances, but Mando looked back to his glass. You took a couple steps inside and glanced around the room before your eyes landed on him. He ignored your glare, but couldn’t ignore the fact you were coming closer.

Mando wasn’t one to sit around and wallow like this, but given the look on your face he had disappeared for longer than you liked. You sat yourself directly across from him, sitting back against the booth chair and crossing your arms. Mando rolled his eyes under his helmet.

“Mando,” you said coldly.

“(Y/N),” he said back. You huffed.

“How long are you planning on sitting here, feeling sorry for yourself?”

“I’m not sitting here feeling sorry for myself,” he paused, “I’m. . . Thinking.”

“Bullshit,” you said shortly, “you’ve been gone since we landed here. All night. And this morning.”

“We need a plan. There’s no other leads out here, nothing. Nada,” he leaned forward and placed his arms on the table, “I need to be alone.”

You shook your head, “You’re not the only one going across the universe on this mission, Mando. We should be thinking of options together.”

“I didn’t ask you to come along,” he reminded you. His voice was harsher then he meant it, and he could see your eyes react. It was quick, but he could see that hurt your feelings before you stood from the table.

“Fine. I’ll be back on the Crest.”

You left as quickly as you entered. Mando relaxed against the back of the booth staring at the drink before him, really wishing he could just take the shot now. Another person sat across from him, older, female. She smelled like. . .well he wouldn’t say.

“That seat’s taken,” he grumbled.

“Doesn’t look like it,” her voice sweetly rang. Mando looked up at her, and she leaned against the table and smiled at him.

“Make it quick,” he warned.

“You’re a hunter, yes?” She asked, her eyes looked him over slowly. Mando didn’t let it faze him though.

“I said make it quick.”

Her smile fell, and she pulled something from her jacket, Mando had his hand on his blaster, just in case, but she placed a puck on the table. The image that came from it was that of a bounty.

“A Naboo war criminal. He’s been seen here on Zeffo in the depths of the mountains up North. Should be easy enough for a Mandalorian like you,” she smiled.

“You don’t have any men here who could handle him?”

“They’ve tried and failed. He’s a master at hiding his tracks. But, if you find him, he’ll come peacefully,” she sat back against the booth, “like I said. Should be easy enough for you.”

Mando looked at the hologram for only a moment before grabbing the puck and it disappeared. He stood from his position and started towards the door, onto his next mission. Alone.

You, on the other hand, had made it back to the Razor Crest and let the ramp close behind you before you grumbled in frustration. Mando was a lot of things. He didn’t let you make any decisions, he didn’t really listen to you, and he was irrational. You paced back and forth, going over what had just happened in your head. You just wanted to help. That’s all! But him and his Beskar armour were so thick headed you could never get through to him.

A cooing sound broke you from your trance, and you stopped in your tracks to look at the Child, who was looking at you in confusion. You sighed and kneeled down to face him a little better.

“Sorry, kid,” you let him grab your finger as you spoke, “sometimes he acts like a real Nerf herder.”

The Child tilted his head at you, and you smiled, picking him up and sitting on the cot you slept on most of the time. You rested him in your lap and ran your hand over one of his ears. You chatted to him, mostly to yourself since he can’t talk, and slowly dozed off. Your head rolled back against the wall of the ship and the Child curled into your legs.

You didn’t know how long you knocked out for, but the moment the ramp started to open you jolted awake. The Child’s eyes opened and adjusted so he could see the ramp as well, but you grabbed him from your lap and stood to look over the edge. As the ramp lowered and you could see more, you squinted into the darkness. The only light you had was some lights on the outside of the ship and the moon shining off Mando’s armour. You watched as he stood beside a man, one you definitely didn't recognize. Narrowing your eyes, you noticed the cuffs around his wrist, and you looked to Mando. Under the helmet, you didn’t know if he was looking your way, but you grumbled and walked back towards the compartment you hid the Child in. You set him down and pat his head, offering an apology as you let the door close shut.

Moving back to the ramp, it was lowered just in time for you to return. Mando shoved the man forward, who started his climb up into the ship. You crossed your arms in front of you, ignoring the look of the man.

“What is this, Mando?” You asked. The man paused beside you, staring fully now, and you glanced at him for only a moment. Mando abruptly grabbed him, moving him past you.

“Stop staring at her,” he commanded. He moved him to the ladder up to the cockpit, and motioned for him to get climbing. With one final glance towards you, he started up the ladder, and Mando looked back at you.

“Bounty,” he answered shortly. You didn’t have time to respond as he also climbed up the ladder. You stood there, dumbfounded, and the ramp began to close behind you and the familiar whizzing of the engines started.

Great. Another decision made without you. But you couldn’t be  _ too _ surprised. With a sigh, you walked over to the ladder, and held onto it to steady yourself as you felt the ship lift from the ground. You climbed each step swaying a bit with the turbulence, but eventually made it up. You carefully sat in the chair closest to Mando, ignoring the man who still stared at you. Glancing at what coordinates you could see, your head snapped to him.

“Naboo?” You asked.

“Yes,” Mando replied. You sat back in your seat, staring at the stars before you as the Razor Crest entered space. Silence filled the cockpit as he jumped to hyperspace, and you shook your head.

* * *

Naboo. Luscious hills and rivers, home to the Naboo and Gungans. Also home to loved Padme Amidala and the infamous Emperor Palpatine many moons ago. But the Naboo didn’t like to discuss the latter. Instead, they carried on with their extravagant way of living and lived peacefully now, some would say ignoring that piece of their past. It was rather easy for Mando to return the war criminal, in fact palace guards had met him on the landing pad. He handed him over, and got his money. But, the Senator with them invited him to stay, for as long as he needed.

“The Naboo people thank you for bringing this man back for trial,” he said, nodding, “we would like to extend a welcome to you and your crew to stay. As long as you need of course.”

Mando only had to think about it for a moment before he agreed. The Senator happily left a couple of his men there, and Mando entered the Crest to fetch you and the Child.

When he came aboard, you stood, “Are we leaving?”

“Not exactly,” he replied, picking up the Child and placing him in his pod. The Child smiled at him, and Mando shut the pod closed, and it began to move beside him.

“They’ve invited us to stay,” he said. You blinked at him.

“You want to stay?” you asked. He nodded.

“He needs proper food,” he looked down to the pod, “and I thought you would like..proper accommodations for a change.”

You frowned at him, and he raised a brow under his visor. Why were you upset?

“Mando. . . I don’t know,” you paused, and he cut you off.

“Is there something you need to tell me?” he asked. He saw a flicker of something in your eye, but you shook your head.

“No,” you put your jacket on and looked back to him, “let’s just go.”

Mando nodded, though he was unsure, and he walked off the ramp. You followed behind him and the pod, taking bigger strides to catch up on his sides. The city was beautiful, he could admit, the old buildings still stood grand and in great shape. The people who passed them by paused to stare, but he paid no attention to it. Like he always said, he was used to it.

You, on the other hand, tried to ignore the stares. For once, you knew they weren’t staring at the Mandalorian towering beside you, but you knew their eyes followed you. You felt your hand shaking at your side, and when you got onto the transport, you gripped your jacket to stop the trembling. Mando sat beside you, the pod in the rear, and while his helmet faced forwards his eyes were on you.

You were acting weird ever since he brought that bounty onboard, and now it was more evident. You were hiding something. He didn’t like that. The transport sped through the city, heading straight for the palace, with the wind hitting them, Mando glaned to you.

“What is up with you?” he asked, finally growing annoyed with your leg shaking. You stopped.

“Nothing,” you replied in the same manner as on the Razor Crest.

Of course he didn’t believe you. But with the transport coming to a stop, and everyone stepping out, you had wandered on a couple steps ahead of him. But Mando was quick to catch up with you, grabbing your arm and pulling you with him towards a pillar. You let out a surprised sound as he turned you against it, pressing you against the pillar.

“What the fuck--”

“You’re lying to me,” he said, “don’t say it’s nothing.  _ What  _ is going on?”

You swallowed the lump in your throat, and got ready to reply when one of the guards interrupted, asking if there was a problem. Mando released your arm and back a couple inches away, but not releasing his stare.

“No,” he replied shortly. You straightened your jacket and Mando walked past you deeper into the palace. This time you chose to walk behind him, looking at all the details in the building. The windows let sunshine in and the paintings on the wall showed the royalty before now. Your attention was drawn back to Mando when a man came up to him to speak to him once more. You stopped, carefully not to bump into the pod, trying to glance over his shoulder.

“We’re happy you’ve decided to stay,” the man’s voice said, “we did get a room ready for you and your companions.”

“Right,” Mando replied, “I think it would be best if she had her own space.”

“Yes of course, and who may this be?”

Mando moved to the side and you came face to face with the Senator. His smile noticeably faded as he locked eyes with you. Mando, puzzled, looked between you both. 

“It can’t be,” he whispered. Your breath hitched in your chest as he took a step forward, and Mando stepped to your side, hand resting on his blaster.

“Is that you, (Y/N)?”

Mando stopped. His head slowly turned to you, who glanced at him sadly. The expression he had under his helmet would easily translate to  _ what the fuck? _ You looked back to the Senator, who carefully placed both hands on your face and peered at your facial features.

“Senator Adis,” you said, almost in a whisper. Under his helmet, Mando closed his eyes briefly before looking up to the ceiling.

Senator Adis smiled at you though, “My dear, we have always wondered if you would come back to us.”

He released you from his grip, and you rubbed your arm nervously, “My father thought it best I wasn’t here when the Empire fell.”

He shook his head, “That was a year ago, why not return sooner?”

_ Yeah, why not return sooner?  _ Mando wanted to ask.

As if sensing his thoughts, you glanced at Mando, “My. . . uncle wouldn’t have it.”

“That is a tyrannus act,” Senator Adis said, waving over one of his officials, “we can get the New Republic to charge him for this.”

“I’m sorry but,” Mando cut in, gaining everyone’s attention, “ _ why  _ would the Republic care that much about him holding one of your citizens?”

Senator Adis looked between you and the Mandalorian, furrowing his brow in confusion, “She is not just one of our citizens,” he drawled. Mando looked to you in a stare, not that anyone could see but damn if you could feel the daggers he was sending you.

“With her father sadly passed. . . She is our queen.”

_ Queen _ .

You hadn’t been referred that term in. . . well ages honestly. And the pomp and circumstance that came with it now felt overbearing to you. You reveled in the fact you were considered more so a commoner on Taris and perusing the galaxy with Mando. Here, as much as you loved Naboo and its people, it felt like  _ too much _ right now.

You had gotten swept away with the Senator, and Mando was left to his own devices. All you wanted was to apologise for not telling him, but then you remembered the last few weeks. He hid things from you constantly, and if he had known your status how would he have felt? He would’ve dropped you off here faster than you could imagine.

Night had fallen quickly, and you were set up in your old room. It was almost just how you left it, but with the news of your return, it was updated just a bit. The bed wasn’t as small as you recalled, white curtains that blew from the wind, and a soft carpet in the main area. You had taken the longest and hottest shower for the first time in months, since your stint on Taris, and changed into a sleeping gown. The black fabric cascaded down your body and swept against the floor as you walked. You made your way out onto the balcony off the main room, wind blowing against your body and leaving you with a chill.

Inside, there was a knock on the door, and one of your maiden’s quickly opened it, surprised by the guard and Mandalorian he was escorting. She glanced behind her at you, and waved for him to enter. Mando stepped around her, and the maiden closed the door behind him, and walked a couple steps towards you.

“Miss,” she called, and you turned around, looking directly at Mando, “you have a visitor.”

“Thank you, Winnie,” you nodded and Mando took a couple more steps towards you, “could you please give us a moment alone?”

Winnie nodded, backing away and disappearing from the room. You rubbed your hands togethers, staying close to the railing aligning the balcony.

“Were you planning on telling me?” Mando asked. He walked past you to the railing and rested his arms against it. You watched him, and looked back out to the horizon.

“One day, but not anytime soon,” you told him honestly. He didn’t respond and you sighed.

“Can you honestly tell me if I had told you, you would’ve let me stay?”

“That’s besides the point,” Mando replied, straightening his posture and turning back to you, “you lied to me.”

“And what have you been doing this whole time?” You asked him, crossing your arms in front of you, and continued.

“These last few months you have left me out of a lot of the decision making, and just expected me to stay on the Crest and watch the Child,” you sighed, “not that that’s a problem but you didn’t even ask me what I want.”

“I was trying to protect you. Both of you,” he replied. You shook your head.

“You don’t get to make those kinds of decisions for me.”

“Well lucky for the both of us, here we are,” you lifted his hands a bit to motion around him, “right where you belong.”

He began to walk away, and you stood there dumbfounded. Eyeing the back of his helmet, you began to follow him, “Lucky for the both of us? What does that mean?”

Mando turned back around quickly, “I said from the start that I didn’t want you to come along,” his motions made you stop in your tracks, “this isn’t some kind of crusade you get to pick because you didn’t want to come back and be a little princess. It’s dangerous, life or death. The Child’s safety is my top priority. And I had to worry about you when I didn’t need to.”

His words cut you deeply. The lump that formed in your throat as you fought back that drying feeling in your eyes was too heavy for you to handle. But you tried to keep an even look on your face. You smiled a bit, fighting back the tears you could feel pool in your eyes.

“You can leave then, Mando.”

He stood there for a moment, and just when a tear was about to fall down your cheek, he left your quarters.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for this being so late. idk it's not performing as well as i had hoped and that just honestly makes me not motivated to write it (as much as I want to see this story through). but i hope you enjoy.


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